tips and tricks – Page 2 – Western Canadian Fishing

Tips and Tricks When Ice Fishing for Perch Perch are a highly sought-after fish, both for the fun of catching them and for dinner! These are probably one of the tastiest fish that is readily available. They also make an excellent starter fish for introducing new anglers to the sport. Here are a few tips when ice fishing for perch . Finding the Perch When trying to locate perch Drill multiple holes, as schools will migrate around as the day progresses. A good tactic when drilling a lot of holes is to start in the shallows and work your way out. until you know for sure there are perch present do not spend too long on any particular hole. jig for 5 or 10 minutes then move on to the next whole rinse repeat. When you find a school you will be in for a great time. Schools of perch can number in the 100's .If they are feeding aggressively the action will be fast and furious. This makes it very easy to catch your limit. Ideal perch fishing depths will vary depending on time of season, day and even Lake. In Late winter the shallows are great as they get ready to spawn. You will often find schools of smaller perch in the shallow Flats, weed beds are also favored. When hunting Jumbos head out to deep water (30 feet) Often later in the day. Rod and Line Selection Perch do not get very large topping out a little bit over 12 to 14 inches in length and 2 lb Maximum. For this reason you're going to want go with lighter tackle when targeting them. A-Rod rated medium light or light with a sensitive tip is recommended. For fishing line a test of 4 lb is sufficient. If it's very cold outside your line will have memory and not straighten out properly. This can make it hard to detect bites from smaller fish. Straighten out the line by running it through your hands and, applying a bit of pressure to remove the coil in the line. For your second hole I would suggest using a windlass tip up. Put your favorite lure combination on the end to help you find where the perch are. Once you have located the fish I would strongly suggest just using your rod and reel. As perch travel in groups the action normally will be very fast. The best Perch Lures and Baits The natural diet of perch consists of small fish and, invertebrates; insects,shrimp, crayfish Etc. Perch can also be cannibalistic. Knowing what these fish naturally prey on helps you imitate their diet to get more fish on the ice! Perch will strike a vast array of lures and baits . It is always a good idea to carry a variety with you in case the fish aren't aggressively feeding. First off we'll cover lures. some of the more popular ones are jigs. You can get jigs made from tungsten instead of lead. These will sink faster due to the metal being denser, very handy as you will be using fairly small jigs. I am partial to lighter colours yellow, green or white UV painted glow in the dark is nice also. This helps in low light and murky lakes and rivers. Jigging Spoons or Slender Spoons Next are the jigging spoons with beads. This is your run of the mill spoon with a hook off the back and a larger bead on the hook. Perch are quite partial to these. Slender spoons are another option. Jigging Raps The last thing I am going to cover are fish/minnow imitation lures. Rapala jigging raps are always a good thing to have in your tackle box for ice fishing. The smallest size is perfect for perch. Due to the flared fins on the tail of these lures making them dance around a lot in the water. This is very attractive to curious fish. Nothing Beats Natural Bait for Perch Bait can be presented on a standard hook or lots of people prefer to add it to their favorite lure. Tipping a lure with small minnow, minnow head, wax worm, meal worm or maggots. Make sure to keep live larvae warm inside an ice fishing tent, hut or vehicle.